Know Thy Soul
by Roses of Change
Summary: A semblance is the manifestation of ones soul. However, what does it take for ones soul to manifest itself? Find out the stories of our heroes and heroines and the history of their strongest weapons. Their souls themselves!


**Hello guys and gals! This is my first ever story so I hope that you all enjoy! If you enjoy the story make sure to favorite, follow, or review! Now, without further ado, onto the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. (No matter how much I wish I did.)**

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 **Know Thy Soul**

A small girl in a red cape stood silently in front of a singular tombstone with a small frown on her face. "I'm tired of running away Mom." Images of a much younger girl began to appear in her mind, memories of years long gone. The memory that stood out the most was one that never really left her thoughts, even after all this time. The day that her entire world would change. The day that she unlocked her semblance.

A young Ruby could be seen cheerfully skipping through the kitchen with a disaster of sugar, flour, and butter littering her surroundings. A highly-amused Yang merely watched on as the little ball of energy attempted, once again, to make a batch of cookies to welcome her mother home from one of her weekly missions. "Sis I may not be a cooking expert, but I am pretty sure the ingredients go in the bowl and not….everywhere else." Ruby inflated her cheeks in childish indignation as she stomps her feet and points an accusing finger towards the giggling blonde. "I've made cookies with Mom tons of times so you just hush and let me work my magic!" As if the kitchen itself was protesting her words, a ball of cookie dough fell from the ceiling and landed on the pouting red-cloaked girl. Both sisters stared blankly at each other before bursting out into laughter.

It was this scene that a solemn Tai Xiao Long came home to, the sorrow visible in his eyes growing more obvious at the knowledge of what his news will do to his little girls. He takes a moment to gather himself before walking into the kitchen where he was greeted with two happy squeals and a red and yellow blur collided into his chest. He chuckles softly and gently wraps his arms around both of his little girls, his eyes beginning to grow misty as he kneels down to look both sisters in the eyes. "It's good to see you girls too, but…I have to tell you both something. Your mother..well…I'm sorry girls but her mission took a turn for the worse. She's…she's not coming back." Yang is the first to fully understand what her father meant, tears flowing down her cheeks as she desperately shakes her head "No, that can't be true! I won't believe it! She can't be gone!" Ruby, however, seemed to be in denial, simply looking up at her father in confusion. "Why isn't she coming back Daddy? Is she lost? We should just go get her and then I can show her the cookies that I'm making for her." A choked sob escapes Tai's lips as he pulls both sisters into a tight hug "S-She isn't lost Ruby. It was supposed to be a simple recon mission up north but she was ambushed by a horde of Grimm. She's dead girls. I'm so sorry." Ruby pries her body from her Father's grip with a pained shout, "No! I know she's out there! I know it!" She then turned and bolted out of the kitchen while Tai leapt up with a panicked cry "Ruby no, come back!" Both Yang and himself run from the kitchen to see an open door and small footprints in the snow leading out into the woods.

Breathless gasps left Ruby's lips as she ran as fast as she could through the dense woods, branches and vines leaving small scratches along her small form as she mindlessly charged forward. ' _She can't be dead. She can't, she can't, she can't!'_ Tears flowed freely down her cheeks as she ran faster and faster, trying to outrun the words of her father repeating in her mind. ' _Why can't I escape it? Go away! I need to be faster! Faster! FASTER!'_ Unknown to the girl, her body had reacted to her desperate thoughts, her body accelerating into nothing but a blur of red with no other sign of her presence except a trail of vibrant red petals. Unfortunately, Ruby's body was not conditioned for such speed and the girl quickly finds herself falling to the ground, her vision slowly growing hazy as deep fatigue gripped her form. As her eyes slowly fluttered shut, she heard a tired sigh and a pair of black boots stepping into her view before a smooth male voice filled the clearing, "The things I do for my nieces."

A small chuckle fills the small clearing where a teenage Ruby sat in front of her mother's grave, "Uncle Qrow started training me soon after that and I would like to think he did a pretty good job of it. But…I have still been such a coward. Every time something painful and difficult comes up, I do what I have always done. I run. I run as fast as I can and I never look back. Your death…Penny...Pyrrha…and now Yang and the rest of Team RWBY." She pauses and looks down at the ground for a long moment before looking back up with a determined smile. "No longer. From now on I will no longer run away. Now…Now I will run as fast as I can forward. Like you would have wanted. I hope you are watching Mom. I'm going to make you proud."

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 **A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the story! This is the first of hopefully a series of one shots about the possible origins of all of our favorite characters semblances! If you want some more, please let me know in a review. Also, I am open to suggestions about who to write about next if my readers want more. Once again, thanks for reading!**


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